Download the People Group List (16 languages .csv)

Amharic - አማርኛ | Arabic - عربي
Bengali - বাংলা | Chinese (Simplified) - 中文（简体）
Chinese (Traditional) - 中文（繁體) | French - Français
German - Deutsch | Gujarati - ગુજરાતી
Hindi - हिन्दी | Indonesian - Bahasa Indonesia
Korean - 한국어 | Nepali - नेपाली
Portugese - Português | Russian - Русский
Spanish - Espanol | Tagalong / Filipino
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PEOPLE GROUP PROFILE

The Bouyei of China

The Bouyei of China, numbering approximately 3,210,000 people, are Engaged yet Unreached. They are a large, officially recognized ethnic group of southern China, best known for their Tai‑speaking language, rice‑farming traditions, and long presence on the Yunnan–Guizhou Plateau. They mostly adhere to Ethnoreligion and Bouyei is their primary language.

Photo by Google. (2026). Image generated by Gemini 3.1 Flash: Bouyei

Fast Facts:

Affinity Group: Southeast Asian Peoples
Country: China
People Cluster: Bouyei
Primary Language(s): Bouyei (pcc)
Primary Religion(s): Ethnoreligion
Population: 3,210,000
Strategic Progress Index (SPI): Engaged yet Unreached
Global Status of Evangelical Christianity (GSEC): Less than 2% Evangelical, No Recent CP Activity
People Group ID: PG006696
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Pray for the Bouyei of China

Join others around the world in praying for the lost to be saved, the gospel to advance, the global Church to grow, and for laborers to be sent out and sustained in the harvest.

Pray Now!
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Dig Deeper (Religion):

Primary Religion: Ethnoreligion
Religious Affiliation: Ethnoreligion

80%
%
Ethnoreligion Adherents

Dig Deeper (Language):

Primary Language: Bouyei
Language Family: Tai-Kadai

100%
%
Bouyei Speakers

Media Resources in Bouyei:

Films:
TitleLink
JESUSView Film
JESUSView Film

2 films

Provided by the Jesus Film Project

View all resources

Bible Resources in Bouyei:

Bible Name (Translation)VideoAudioText
ZXN Version✓✓

1 entry

Provided by Faith Comes by Hearing

Or check out the Bouyei bible at Bible.com

Linked from YouVersion

View all resources

SPI: Unreached yet Engaged

The Bouyei are Engaged yet Unreached, which means there are less than 2% evangelical Christian populations but there are sustained efforts at establishing self-sustaining churches consistent with evangelical faith and practice.

Next steps for the Bouyei:
Continue prayer and fasting for this group
Continue gospel seed sowing and church planting among this group
Begin training up local leaders to lead and develop strategies to reach their own people

Pray specifically for the Bouyei of China

How then will they call on him in whom they have not believed? And how are they to believe in him of whom they have never heard? And how are they to hear without someone preaching?
readRomans 10:14

Pray that those who haven't heard will hear the Word of Christ and believe in Him, calling upon the name of the Lord to be saved.

How beautiful upon the mountains are the feet of him who brings good news, who publishes peace, who brings good news of happiness, who publishes salvation, who says to Zion, "Your God reigns."
readIsaiah 52:7

Pray that those who don't know the good news of peace and salvation through Jesus Christ will have an opportunity to receive it. Pray that it will bring hope and healing to their souls.

And when they had prayed, the place in which they were gathered together was shaken, and they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and continued to speak the word of God with boldness.
readActs 4:31

Pray that as people place their faith in Christ, they will be filled with the Holy Spirit and speak God's Word with boldness, sharing the love of Jesus with those around them.

Now when they heard of the resurrection of the dead, some mocked. But others said, “We will hear you again about this.”
readActs 17:32

Ask God to give those He sends to cross cultures wisdom and discernment as they engage in spiritual conversations with those who are curious about the gospel.

Bouyei Across Countries (ROP3 - 114016) reported in the following countries:

Strategic Progress Index
All

2 people groups

PhotoPeople Group IDNameCountryPopulation ▼Strategic Progress IndexLanguageReligion
BouyeiPG006696BouyeiChina3,210,000Engaged yet UnreachedBouyeiEthnoreligion
BouyeiPG011111BouyeiVietnam2,000Engaged yet UnreachedBouyeiChinese Folk Religion

To download a comprehensive people group list in spreadsheet form, visit our Research Data page.

Peoplegroups.org relies on updates from the field and other organizations for much of our data, so if you have any updates, please contact us. We use various international naming standards. For a list of these standards and fields, visit our Data Standards section.

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